The Practical Garden-Book Part 24

SNAPDRAGON, or ANTIRRHINUM. An old garden favorite, flowering freely through a long season. The dwarf strain is well adapted for bedding or borders. Any light soil, well enriched with rotted manure, will grow Snapdragons to perfection. Distinct varieties should be propagated by cuttings, as they do not come true from seed. Sow seed early in the spring.

Although bloom may be obtained the first year, late sown plants sometimes persist over winter and bloom early in the spring. Snapdragons make good window plants.

SNOWDROP (_Galanthus_). This is one of the earliest flowers of spring, always welcome. It should be planted in the edge of the border. The bulbs may be planted in October in any good border soil and left undisturbed for years; or they may be potted at that time, and after forming roots be gently forced into bloom in winter.

SNOWFLAKE (_Leucoium_). Culture same as for _Snowdrop_.

SODDING. In general, the best way to secure a lawn is by the sowing of seed (see _Lawn_), since it is the least expensive way. For small areas, and along the sides of walks and drives, sods may be used. The results are quicker. Unless the sod is of the right kind, however, and very carefully laid, the results are not so good as with seed.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Sod-cutter, for tr.i.m.m.i.n.g sod edgings]

The sod which is best adapted to the Sodding of lawns is that which comes from an old, closely grazed pasture. Sod from a sheep pasture is supposed to be best. Such sod has been so closely grazed that it has made a very dense mat of roots, and all the weeds have been destroyed.

The droppings of the animals also make the ground rich. The sod should be cut in very thin strips. It should not be more than an inch and one-half or two inches in thickness. If it is thicker than that, it is heavy and bulky to handle, and is not so easily laid. Ordinarily, the sod is cut in strips ten inches or a foot wide. A board is laid on the sod and the strip is cut along either side of it with a sod cutter or a sharp spade. Two men then roll up the sod. One stands on the strip of sod with his face toward the man who, with the spade, cuts it loose beneath. As it is cut loose, the man on the strip rolls the sod so that the upper surface is on the inside of the roll. Strips longer than ten or twelve feet make rolls which are too heavy to handle with ease.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Cutting sod]

The soil upon which the sod is to be placed should be very loose, so that the sod, can be pounded down firmly. Some heavy pounder should be used, as a block of wood. It is usually impossible to pound down sod with the back of a spade sufficiently firm unless the soil is very loose. The sod should be pounded until the top is about level with the surrounding soil. This insures contact with the soil beneath, so that there are no air s.p.a.ces and no likelihood of drying out. Sod pounded down as firmly as this should grow very readily. If a sod edging is laid along walks and drives, it should be pounded down an inch or more lower than the surrounding loose land which is seeded, because the loose land will finally settle; otherwise the sod border is likely to be higher than adjacent land after a year or two.

If there are uneven places on the sodded area, these depressions can be filled in with very loose, fine soil; and the gra.s.s will grow through it. In dry weather, a sodded area may be mulched with a half inch of fine loam to protect it.

SOILS. Soils are of many kinds. The cla.s.sification of soils depends upon one's point of view. Gardeners ordinarily call a good, friable, dark-colored, rich Soil a garden loam. No Soil is so good that it cannot be improved. It is improved in two general ways: by tilling (see _Tillage_), and by the application of various substances.

In considering the improvement of lands by the application of foreign substances, two distinct things are to be considered: the improvement of the physical texture, or tilth, of the Soil; the increasing of its plant-food. These are coordinate objects. In some cases one may be of prime importance, and in another case the other may be more necessary.

Lands which have a fair store of available plant-food may be unproductive. Such lands may be very greatly benefited by stable manure, even though that manure may have lost a large part of fertility by being baptized under the eaves of the barn. If plant-food alone is needed, then some concentrated or commercial fertilizer may be the best thing to apply. In most cases the main or chief amelioration of the land is to be wrought by tillage, stable manures, mulches, green crops, and the like; if special results are desired, commercial fertilizers may be added more or less liberally, as the case demands (see _Manures_, _Fertilizers_).

The top-dressing of Soils is often very beneficial because it tends to prevent the escape of moisture, and often improves the physical texture.

If the material contains plant-food, the land will also be directly enriched. The tr.i.m.m.i.n.gs from lawns may be a distinct protection to lands if allowed to remain (see _Lawns_); and the leaves which blow into clumps of shrubbery may often be allowed to remain with good results.

However, if the leaves become too thick year after year, they tend to induce a surface rooting of the shrubs. This, however, may be no disadvantage unless the mulch were finally to be removed. One of the very best top-dressings for borders and shrubbery is spent tan bark, since it does not pile up on the ground, but tends to work into it.

Well-rotted sawdust often has the same effect. These materials are much used by gardeners, when they can be had, since they can be raked into the soil in the spring, and need not be removed.

SOLIDAGO. See _Goldenrod_.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Spade]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Shovel]

SPADES and SHOVELS must be a part of every garden equipment. The common and most useful forms are shown in the cuts, but long-handled tools are more useful for the loading of earth, the making of ditches, the spreading of mulches, and the like. It pays to buy the steel tools, with strongly strapped handles.

SPEARMINT is prized by many people as a seasoning, particularly for the Thanksgiving and holiday cookery. It is a perennial and perfectly hardy, and will live in the open garden year after year. If a supply of the fresh herbage is wanted in winter, remove sods of it to the house six weeks before wanted. Place the sods in boxes, and treat as for house plants. The plants should have been frosted and become perfectly dormant before removal.

SPINACH. Probably the most extensively grown early spring vegetable, being in great demand as greens. The earliest crop that finds its way to market is gathered from seed sown in September or October, often protected by frames or other means through the severe winter, and cut soon after growth starts in early spring. Even as far north as New York Spinach may stand over winter without protection. Spinach is forced by placing sash over the frames in February and March, protecting the young leaves from severe freezing by mats or straw thrown over the frames.

Seed may be sown in early spring for a succession; later in the season seed of the New Zealand Summer Spinach may be sown, and this will grow through the heat of the summer and yield a fine quality of leaves. The seed of this kind being very hard, should be scalded and allowed to soak a few hours before sowing. This seed is usually sown in hills about three feet apart, sowing four to six seeds in each hill. The spring and winter Spinach should be sown in drills 12 to 14 inches apart, one ounce being sufficient for 100 feet of drill. Remember that common Spinach is a cool-weather (fall and spring) crop.

SPRAYING. Of late years Spraying has come to be one of the most important of all horticultural operations. Most kinds of injurious fungi and insects can be combated by a water spray in which various poisons or injurious substances are contained. There are two general cla.s.ses of Spraying material: first, fungicides, or those which are used for the control of fungi or plant diseases; second, insecticides, or those which are used for the control of insect enemies.

The fungicides usually contain copper or sulfur, or both. The most popular and generally useful fungicide is the Bordeaux mixture (which see). It should be borne in mind that most injurious fungi work on the interior of the leaf or stem, and only the spore-bearing parts come to the surface. It is therefore very important that Spraying with fungicides be done very early in order to prevent the fungus from getting a hold. It is much better to Spray once very thoroughly than to Spray a half dozen times carelessly. It is important that the entire surface of the foliage or stems be covered with the material in order to prevent the access of the fungi.

Of insecticides, there are two general types: those which kill by external contact and are applied to plant lice, scale insects, and all other insects which suck their food; and the poisonous compounds which are used for the chewing insects, as all the tribes of worms and beetles. Of the former cla.s.s, the most important material is kerosene in various forms (which see). Of the latter kind is Paris green (which see). For insects, Spray just as soon as the attack is evident. Paris green and Bordeaux mixture may be used together.

The best pump for Spraying is the one which throws the stream the greatest distance with the least amount of liquid, and the best nozzle is that which distributes the material most finely and evenly. For Spraying plants close at hand, the Vermorel nozzle is now the most popular. If it is desired to reach the tops of large trees, some other nozzle should be used, as the McGowen, Boss, or other types. Every outfit should have two or three kinds of nozzles for different kinds of work. Get a pump with much power.

Spray thoroughly. The general rule is to spray the entire plant until the material begins to drip, at which time it may be supposed that the plant is covered completely. When and how often one should Spray, and what material he should use, will depend entirely upon the difficulty which he is endeavoring to combat. Most fruit trees should be Sprayed before they bloom and again just afterwards. Sometimes they will need Spraying again.

SPREKELIA. Culture of _Amaryllis_.

SQUASH. The time of planting, method of preparing the hills and after culture are the same as for cuc.u.mbers and melons (which see), except that for the Early Bush varieties the hills should be 4 or 5 feet apart, and for the later running varieties from 6 to 8 feet apart. From eight to ten seeds should be planted in each hill, thinning to four plants after danger from bugs is over. Of the early Squashes, one ounce of seed will plant fifty hills; of the later varieties, one ounce will plant but eighteen to twenty hills. For winter use, varieties of the Hubbard type are best. For summer use, the Crooknecks and Scallop Squashes are popular. In growing winter Squashes in a northern climate, it is essential that the plants start off quickly and vigorously: a little chemical fertilizer will help. Pumpkins are grown the same as Squashes.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Hubbard Squash]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Scallop or Patty-pan Summer Squash]

SQUILLS (_Scilla_). BLUE BELL. WILD HYACINTH. Well-known bulbous plants, most of them hardy. They plant well with snowdrops and crocus, flowering at the same time, but continuing longer in bloom. The colors are red, pink, blue or white. The blue varieties have very fine shades of color.

Should be planted in October and remain undisturbed.

STOCKS. The Ten-weeks and the biennial or Brompton Stocks, are found in nearly all old-fashioned gardens. Most gardens are thought to be incomplete without Stocks, and the use of the biennial flowering species as house plants is increasing. The Ten-weeks Stock is usually grown from seed sown in hotbed or boxes in March. The seedlings are transplanted several times previous to being planted out in early May. At each transplanting the soil should be made a little richer. The double flowers will be more numerous when the soil is rich.

The biennial species should be sown the season previous to that in which flowers are wanted, the plants wintered over in a cool house, and grown on the following spring. They may be planted out through the summer and lifted into pots in August or September for winter flowering. These may be increased by cuttings taken from the side shoots; but the sowing of seed is a surer method, and unless an extra fine variety is to be saved, it would be the best one to pursue. Height 10 to 15 inches.

STORING. The principles which are involved in the Storing of perishable products, as fruits and vegetables, differ with the different commodities. All the root crops, and most fruits, need to be kept in a cool, moist and uniform temperature if they are to be preserved a great length of time. Squashes, sweet potatoes, and some other things, need to be kept in an intermediate and what might be called a high temperature; and the atmosphere should be drier than for most other products. The low temperature has the effect of arresting decomposition and the work of fungi and bacteria. The moist atmosphere has the effect of preventing too great evaporation and the consequent shriveling. In the Storing of any commodity, it is very important to see that the product is in proper condition for keeping. Discard all specimens which are bruised or which are likely to decay. Much of the decay of fruits and vegetables in Storage is not the fault of the Storage, but is really the work of diseases with which the materials are infested before they are put into Storage. For example, if potatoes and cabbages are affected with the rot, it is practically impossible to keep them any length of time.

Apples, winter pears, and all roots, should be kept at a temperature somewhat near the freezing point. It should not raise above 40 Fahr.

for best results. Apples can even be kept at one or two degrees below the freezing point if the temperature is kept uniform. Cellars in which there are heaters are likely to be too dry and the temperature too high. In such cases it is well to keep fresh vegetables and fruits in tight receptacles, and pack the roots in sand or moss in order to prevent shriveling. In these places, apples usually keep better if headed up in barrels than if kept on racks or shelves. In moist and cool cellars, however, it is preferable for the home supply to place them on shelves, not piling them more than five or six inches deep, for then they can be sorted over as occasion requires. In case of fruits, be sure that the specimens are not over-ripe when placed in storage. If apples are allowed to lie in the sun for a few days without being packed, they will ripen so much that it is very difficult to keep them.

[Ill.u.s.tration: A good out-door cellar]

Cabbages should be kept at a low and uniform temperature, and water should be drained away from them. They are Stored in many ways in the field, but success depends so much upon the season, particular variety, ripeness, and the freedom from injuries by fungi and insects, that uniform results are rarely secured by any method. The best results are to be expected when they can be kept in a house which is built for the purpose, in which the temperature can be kept uniform and the air fairly moist. When Stored out of doors, they are likely to freeze and thaw alternately; and if the water runs into the heads, mischief is likely to result. Sometimes they are easily Stored by being piled into a conical heap on well-drained soil and covered with dry straw, and the straw covered with boards. It does not matter if they are frosted, provided they do not thaw out frequently. Sometimes cabbages are laid head down in a shallow furrow plowed in well-drained land, and over them is thrown straw, the stumps being allowed to project through the cover. It is only in winters of rather uniform temperature that good results are to be expected from such methods.

In the Storing of all things, especially those which have soft and green matter, as cabbages, it is well to provide for the heating of the produce. If the things are buried out of doors, it is important to put on a very light cover at first so that the heat may escape. Cover them gradually as the cold weather comes on. This is important with all vegetables that are placed in pits, as potatoes, beets and the like. If covered deeply at once, they are likely to heat and rot. All pits made out of doors should be on well-drained and preferably sandy land.

When vegetables are wanted at intervals during the winter from pits, it is well to make compartment pits, each compartment holding a wagon load or whatever quant.i.ty will be likely to be wanted at each time. These pits are sunk in well-drained land, and between each of the two pits is left a wall of earth about a foot thick. One pit can then be emptied in cold weather without interfering with the others.

An outside cellar is better than a house cellar in which there is a heater, but it is not so handy. If it is near the house, it need not be inconvenient, however. A house is usually healthier if the cellar is not used for storage. House cellars used for storage should have a ventilating shaft.